


Blood Antiquities and the Art of the Deal

by TVgirll1971



Category: Whiskey Cavalier (TV)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-11
Updated: 2020-07-17
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:54:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25154281
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TVgirll1971/pseuds/TVgirll1971
Summary: The team investigates a blood antiquities deal that funds a notorious Egyptian terrorist. While Ray, Susan and Standish go undercover at a New York dock, Jai, Will and Frankie deal with events in Cairo.
Relationships: Ray Prince/Susan Sampson
Kudos: 5





	1. Chapter 1

“Hey, Party People! It’s mission time!” Ray said as he walked into the Dead Drop.

“Yeah, we kind of figured from the text you sent telling us to meet here for a mission brief.” Frankie responded.

“Right.” Ray replied, recognizing that Frankie wanted to get down to business. “So, I guess we can start.”

Jai accommodated by lowering the lights and presenting the slide show that Ray had sent earlier.

“Okay.” Ray began. “This is Ammon Rafiq. Egyptian national responsible for several terrorist attacks in and around Egypt. Originally, he started out targeting non-Muslim citizens. However, in the last year and a half he’s broadened his attacks to include Americans. We’ve received intel that the US Embassy in Cairo is to targeted this week.”

“Are we sure this intel is legit?” asked Will.

“No.” Ray admitted. “But the Director wants us to follow up. All of Rafiq’s attacks have involved highly complex bombs. Bombs so complex that any attempt to defuse them have failed. That’s why we need Jai to go to the Embassy and check it out. Will, since you and Frankie are team leaders, you’ll act as liaisons.”

“I thought that was your job.” Frankie said.

“Normally it is, but I need to be here for Phase II of the mission. He went back to the slideshow and brought up another picture. “This is Bernardo Diaz, dock master at the Red Hook Terminal Port here in New York. Authorities believe that he’s involved in a massive relics for money scam. He allows ancient relics to be smuggled in the US where he sells them and gives a portion of the money to Rafiq.

“Which he uses for his terrorist attacks. So we’re talking blood antiquities.” Will clarified then asked, “But why do you need to stay?” he then stopped once he realized the answer. “Oh, wait. Lance.”

“Yeah.” Ray replied. “I’m going to be reusing my old alias—Lance Cooper. However, this time, instead of simply being a dock worker. Lance is a foreman. That way, me and the kid (pointing to Standish) can keep an eye out on what’s getting through the port.”

“Wait. I’m a dockworker?” Standish asked, not looking very pleased.

“This should be good.” Jai muttered to Susan.

“What am I going to be doing?” Susan asked.

“You’re going to be acting as Diaz’s secretary to get some information on his operation. Notably, who he’s working with in the US government.”

“You think someone in the government’s involved?” Will asked.

“That’s how it looks.” He then looked at Susan, “So, see if you can find anything about that. Word is Diaz is a ladies man so try to sex it up a little bit.” Realizing he was talking to his girlfriend, he quickly added. “Well, not too much.”

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** 

**RED HOOK TERMINAL PORT**

“Bernardo Diaz?” Susan said as she walked into the office at the Red Hook Terminal Port. “I’m here for the secretary job—Carmen Sanchez.”

“Good morning, Ms. Sanchez. Take a seat.” Diaz replied as he looked admiringly at “Carmen” who was dressed in a very short black skirt and a sleeveless, plunging cheetah print wrap-around blouse.

Susan studied Diaz. He was a handsome Latino with a nice well-kept beard, roughly her age, He was of average height, a lot shorter than men she usually went for. Putting on her most flirtatious smile, ‘Carmen” sat down across from Diaz and wasted no time showing off her best attributes—smiling seductively, fingering her legs and neckline. “Carmen” was shameless but, as Susan suspected, she got the job. 

“How soon can you start?” Diaz asked, not taking his eyes off Susan’s legs.

“I can start now if you like.” She answered, batting her eyelashes at her new boss. Now hired, Susan played the sexy secretary part to the hilt by doing everything she could to make Diaz notice her. That meant crossing her legs suggestively when taking dictation, smiling seductively while fingering the V-neck of her blouse, leaning over right in front of him. 

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***  


The next day, Ray looked at Susan who was decked out in green shorts and a black and green blouse with a neckline that plunged lower than Ray would’ve liked. Walking up to her, he complained in a soft voice, “You know, you don’t need to sex it up so much.” 

“”Aw, you don’t like it, Lance?” she asked in a seductive voice. ”That’s too bad because I think you’re pretty hot, yourself.”

“Okay, you know y’all are on comms, right?” Standish complained. 

“Get to work, Romeo.” Susan said seductively, using Ray’s little-used code name.

Later in the day, Susan took a break from her duties to gawk at Ray. Damn, he was so sexy on that loading dock—him in his work boots and work gloves, sweat dripping of his chest as he helped his crew load large boxes onto the truck. Again, she marveled at his choice of alias. Most agents excelled at aliases close to their background. Not Ray. Mr. Private School—Nice Neighborhood was killing it as a working class stiff. The psychologist in her wondered if his background did have something to do with it. Perhaps he was acting out the life he would’ve wanted growing up? 

On the dock, Ray and the crew finally got the truck loaded. He let the rest of the crew go on break except for Standish who he ordered to return the pallet to where it came from. Suddenly, Ray spotted Susan in the window of Diaz’s office. Damn, she looked sexy, all glammed up in that short skirt. God, she had great legs. For the millionth time, he wished he was on the receiving end of those legs and not Diaz. Suddenly, he was brought back to reality by the sound of Standish yelling about there being more boxes to load. Ray definitely had to talk to Will about the kid’s undercover skills.

At the end of an agonizing shift, Ray returned to the Dead Drop alone and unloaded on Will. “The kid’s getting on my last nerve! I’ve never heard someone complain so much in my life. ‘This shit’s heavy.’ ‘We gotta put this way over there?’ ‘I’m hungry. When do we break for lunch?’ “For God’s sake, Will. He’s supposed to be blending in, not calling attention to himself.” Ray vented in frustration.

“This is the first time Standish has been undercover like this, Ray. If he’s doing something wrong, you need to tell him.” Will stated.

“What you mean, me? You have more experience training recruits than I do.” Ray argued. “I don’t know anything about it.”

“That’s not true and you know it. I’ve seen you train recruits at the firing range.”

“Well, yeah. Weapons training. That’s different.”

“Training is training, Ray. You’ve been undercover lots of times. If you notice Standish doing something wrong, you need to call him on it.”

“Can’t you just call him up. I mean, shift’s over…”

“No, I can’t, Ray. You’re the one running point, okay? You’re the one seeing the mistakes he’s making so it’s up to you to correct him.”

The next day was more of the same. It really was unbelievable how much complaining one person could do. When it came to just talking to the crew, Standish did great. The crew loved him. They told him things because he wasn’t a threat. No, the problem was the whining whenever he had to do any physical labor. His alias was a working class stiff and the kid was acting like he never did a hard day’s work in his life. 

“Okay” Ray yelled when a new shipment arrived. “Let’s get a move on! Boxes aren’t going to move themselves!! Get the lead out!” 

“Come on, man!” Standish objected. “This can’t wait til after lunch? Where’s our Union rep?” An increasingly angry Ray fought the urge to punch Standish in the face. Being undercover was about laying low and he’s grumbling about union reps!

“You can have lunch when you’re done! Now get to work!” Ray yelled.

“You know,” Standish replied in a soft voice when the rest of the crew walked off, “Foreman Lance sounds an awful lot like Weapons Instructor Ray.”

Ray shot Standish a hard stare, dragged him by the collar and angrily pulled him off to side.

“Are you trying to tank this mission?” Ray asked in an angry whisper, after he shoved Standish against a wall.

“No.” Standish said, wide-eyed, in a high pitched voice. 

“Then shut up, lay low and do your damned job. Act like you belong here and for Christ’s sake stop calling for the Union. And if you ever say my name outside here again, I will…”

“Okay, Okay, I’m sorry. I’ll do better. I promise.” Standish said, freaked out. 

Ray’s gaze softened and he sighed. “Get over there and help the crew unload that truck. And try not to trip over anything this time, okay?”

“Sure thing.” Standish said. “Yep.” Standish thought to himself. “Mr. Party People has definitely left the building.”

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** 

**CAIRO**

Frankie, Will and Jai were in Cairo for two days without incident. Will was beginning to suspect the intel was wrong when suddenly he got a call—a bomb was found in the Embassy building and the bomb squad was on the scene. 

“What’s this?” Jai asked when he arrived on the scene and saw the bomb encased in a glass enclosure.

“Bomb disarmament 101. Freeze the part; stop the detonator." the bomb expert said as if it was obvious.

"No." Jai said, shaking his head, as if it was obvious. "I build something like this, first thing I’d expect is the bomb squad to turn it into an ice cube.” Jai bent down to examine the bomb, talking softly. “If I built something like this, I’d install a mercury switch. As soon as the temperature drops, it goes off. And there is it.” Jai noted before taking out the tube to stop the freeze. “And that is why your squads keep failing.” Jai pointed out.

“We found this with the bomb.” The officer said, handing the paper to Will.

“Release Kareem Ali by midnight tonight or the bomb goes off.” Will read out loud.

“This is an exchange?” Frankie asked. 

“Kareem Ali,” Will said out loud, trying to sort out the situation. “US forces captured him a week ago.” 

“Yeah, he’s probably in some CIA black site.” Frankie noted. “Rafiq has to know the US doesn’t negotiate with terrorists.”

“Guess Ali’s capture struck a nerve.” Will replied. 

Meanwhile, Jai continued to study the bomb. "Amazing.” he said, with admiration in his voice, “This bomb is built like a Swiss watch."

"Can you defuse it?" Will asked.

"Maybe." Jai admitted, as he continued examining the bomb. “Launch tube--eight inches across. Not your average pipe bomb. Definitely military grade. They've put in a photo-cell chip" 

"What's that mean?" Frankie asked.

"Means I can't see what's inside. Not with a normal light source anyway. I need a chem light with a low frequency." After getting the light, he continued studying the bomb. "Okay, I can't see inside the shell because the shell is lined with lead. However the Geiger counter is picking up readings. That means the bomb is nuclear.”

“What?” Frankie exclaimed.

“Wait. How the hell did Rafiq get the materials to build a nuclear bomb?” Will asked.

“Probably from all the antiquities he’s been selling.” Jai said. "Now, here's the deal. Switches, mercury gauges, hidden levels on all four corners--this bomb was never built to be deactivated or disarmed. It was built to go off." “

“But if he never intended…? What if we would’ve released Ali?” Frankie asked.

“He would’ve double crossed us.” Will finished. “We need to evacuate Cairo now”

“I’ll stay here.” Jai said.

“Jai.” Frankie warned.

“He doesn’t know we’re on to him, Frankie.” Jai responded. “If he sticks to his midnight deadline, which I believe he will, I have plenty of time to get out.”

A few hours later, Jai contacted Frankie and Will over comms. "Frankie, Will, I have something. The bomb—it’s not nuclear. He only made it to look that way.”

“How…?” Will started to ask before Jai interrupted.

“You know how I found plutonium readings near the mortar around the lead? That didn’t make any sense to me. Why was I picking up a reading through the lead? So, I did some more looking and what the Geiger reader actually picked up was plutonium powder spread around the mortar. Whoever built this thing didn't anticipate spillage."

"Wait, why would they build a bomb that only looks nuclear? Will asked.

"I don’t know.” Jai replied.

Frankie’s eyes went wide as she realized the answer. “A distraction. Authorities are busy evacuating, that means another part of the city is vulnerable to attack.”

Frankie was right. Despite the warning, the police were unable to stop a strike on a weapons depot that killed twenty people. Additionally, despite Jai’s warnings to place the Embassy bomb in a bombproof enclosure, members of the bomb squad were killed attempting to disarm it.

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** 

**RED HOOK TERMINAL PORT**

“Ugh, I’m starving.” Standish complained, as he and Ray scanned the boxes in storage to see if any contained smuggled Egyptian ruins.They’d already found some and he was getting hungry. “Can we take a break?”

“You’re always starving.” Ray said, shaking his head.

“Well, yeah.” Standish admitted. “I have fast metabolism.” Suddenly, Standish saw something on the ground. “Ooh, jerky! Yes!”

“You’re gonna eat that?” Ray asked.

“Well, yeah. It’s wrapped up. ” Standish replied as a he opened the jerky. After taking a bite, he added. “Does jerky go bad?”

"What's that noise?" Ray asked with a puzzled look on his face.

"Me complaining?"

“No. I think someone’s coming. Hide back there.” Ray said, as he led Standish to the back of the storage room. From the back, Ray saw Diaz enter the storage area with a very tall, well-dressed man “It can’t be.” Ray thought to himself. However, once he heard the man’s voice, he realized that the man was exactly who he thought he was. 

“Sierra,” Ray said quietly on comms after the pair left. “We have a problem. You need to get out of the building now!” 

"Why? What's happening?" Susan asked.

"Someone's headed your way. It's Ben."

"Ben? Ben who" Susan asked, confused.

"You're ex-husband. Ben! Get out before you're spotted. Go out the back door. Meet me behind Storage area D."

A few minutes later, Susan was in front of Ray. "Where's Standish?" she asked.

Ray pointed, “I sent him over here to help the crew unload the newest shipment.”

Susan looked over just in time to see Standish trip over a long box and stifled a laugh. She didn’t know what was funnier, the victory thumbs up Standish gave the crew after he stopped himself from falling on his face or Ray leaning against the wall with his eyes closed in frustration. 

“So, you saw Ben with Diaz? Are you sure?”

Susan asked.

“Positive.” Ray asserted.

“Well, he's with the Attorney General's office. Maybe he's running an investigation?”

“I don’t know. I was too far to hear but it didn’t seem like it.”

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** 

**THE HIVE, CAIRO**

“No way. I don’t buy it.” Will said, as he and Frankie conducted a video conference call with Ray and Standish.

“I know who I saw, Will.” Ray argued.

“Okay, but there could have been any number of reasons why he was there. Maybe he’s running a parallel investigation? Maybe Diaz is an informant? Maybe…,?” 

"Maybe you're pulling this out of your ass." Ray noted.

"That I agree with." Frankie said.

“So, what’s the motive?” Will asked Frankie.

Frankie shrugged. “Money.”

Will shook his head. “I know Ben Sampson. He’s one of the most principled men out there. There’s no way he’s funding terrorists. I don’t care how much they’re paying him.”

“He might not know he is.” Frankie argued. “For all he knows, this is just a simple smuggling operation.” 

“The smuggling’s already been tied to the terrorists. That’s why the team was brought in to begin with. There’s no way someone in the AG’s office doesn’t already know that.” Will noted.

“Okay,” Standish interjected. “But those attacks were on foreign soil. Maybe that made it easier to turn a blind eye to it.”

Frankie spoke up. “We were called to root out a mole, Will. Someone inside the government iss helping with this operation. Sampson’s the most likely suspect. You know that.”

"Because he met with Diaz? That's not exactly compelling evidence." Suddenly, Will’s phone rang. “It’s Susan. Susan, I have you on speaker.”

“I looked through Diaz’s desk after he left for the day. He has a copy of a check written out to Ben. It’s him, Will.” she said, her voice haunted, “Son of a bitch is the mole.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Cairo sequence with Jai defusing the bomb, including much of the dialogue, was taken from The Unit, ep. 1.12 "Morale, Welfare and Recreation (2006)
> 
> The selling of blood antiquities to fund terrorism premise came from Season 1 of Blood and Treasure (2019).Some dialogue was taken from that as well.


	2. Chapter 2

**Federal Building – New York City**

Susan watched Ben through the interrogation window. He’d been there alone for forty five minutes and was getting frustrated. Of course, that was by design. Susan knew full well that Ben hated being kept waiting.

“Oh, for God’s sake, I know you’re watching!” he yelled at the mirror after he was done pacing. “I’m not some street kid you can intimidate! You can’t keep me in here forever. So either let me go or get this over with!”

“Keep your pants on! Someone’s coming in now!” Ray spoke into the intercom when Susan was ready to go in. 

“About damned time!” Ben bellowed. Then his face went white once he saw who walked in. “Susan.” 

“Sit down.” Susan ordered, coldly. She then handed him a sheet of paper. “That is a copy of a check made out to you from one Bernardo Diaz.”

Ben looked at the check in shock and then began, “I can explain.” 

“Explain what? That you used your position at the Attorney General’s office to cover up a smuggling operation? That you helped fund a terrorist so you could get rich?”

"I wasn't funding them." Ben replied. "It wasn't about the money."

Susan leaned back. "Then what was it? What could possibly cause you to betray every principle you ever had?"

After a moment’s pause, Ben replied. “I was blackmailed.”

“Blackmailed? With what?” she asked,

He took a deep breath.. “You remember the Clive Bennett case?"

Susan shook her head. "Clive Bennet. Sounds familiar."

"It was a kidnapping case back when I was still with the DA’s office. A 6 year old boy was taken from Time Square. There was a massive search.”

"A week later, he was found dead.” Susan remembered. “I remember reading about that now. They caught the guy who did it."

Ben nodded. "That's right.” Then with a sigh, he added, “Unfortunately, it wasn't as cut and dry as we thought."

"What do you mean?" Susan asked warily.

"The guy was guilty.” Ben said bitterly. “There is no question in my mind. We had him. Unfortunately the evidence was contaminated thanks the imbeciles at the police department. It's the same story every time. We have a great case that's sidelined by incompetent officers."

"I don't think you get to take the high road right now, Ben." Susan said dryly.

Ben sighed and looked down. "I couldn't let that monster get away with what he did to that boy. I couldn't let him walk because of someone's stupid mistake."

"You doctored evidence." Susan surmised.

"I know it was wrong. I'd just seen too many cases go south and I couldn't let it happen again. Not with that guy."

"Disz somehow found out what you did." 

Ben nodded. “He must have contacts in the NYPD. All I know is he sent me this cryptic note asking to meet me or my secret would be exposed. That meeting he blackmailed me into suppressing the smuggling operation my office was looking into.” Seeing the look on Susan’s face, he continued. “I said no at first. I did, He told me to think about it and—we were talking about my career. Everything I’ve accomplished, every case I worked on for the past twenty years would be put under a microscope.” He closed his eyes briefly and continued. “It was just supposed to be one shipment. That’s all. All I had to do was let that one shipment go through without incident.”

“And you honestly believed that’d be the end of it?” Susan asked dubiously.

He shrugged and shook his head. “I guess I just hoped. But then he asked for my help on another shipment and I” ” he looked down. “I couldn’t say no. ”

“Guess the money didn’t hurt either.” Susan noted.

“I never asked for that.” He said, adamantly. “I never asked him for money.”

“Of course not.” She agreed. “But Diaz rewards loyalty. Plus, the money gives him even more leverage over you. We know you kept the money, Ben. It’s in an off-shore account under your grandfather’s name.” 

“I didn’t touch a penny of that money.” he declared.

“No. I think you have it for insurance in case you ever need it.” Susan took a deep breath and leaned over, putting her arms on the table. “Did you know the money from the artifacts was being used to fund terrorist attacks? And don’t lie because you know I’ll know.”

“I suspected.” Ben admitted. “Of course, when I asked Diaz about the first attack, he refused to tell me.” Ben looked down “He said the less I knew the better.”

“So you just let it go. People died and you didn’t care.”

“Of course, I cared.” He objected. “I went to the police station after that first attack. I sat outside in my car with every intention of turning myself in.” He said, angry with himself. Then his expression softened. “I just couldn’t do. I convinced myself that I could do more good for this country in the AG’s office than from prison.”

“So, you thought you could do more good letting Rafiq attack Americans overseas?”

“Rafiq wasn’t targeting Americans” he noted, defensively. “.At least, not at first.”

“Oh, well. That makes it okay then.” She replied, sarcastically.

“I’m not proud of what I’ve done, Susan, and not a day goes by when I don’t think about those attacks. But the truth is, those people would’ve died even if I wasn’t involved. Rafiq would’ve found a way. ”

“Guess your conscience is clear.” Susan remarked, then added. “It doesn’t matter that members of my team could’ve died from one of those bombs you financed.”

“I didn’t finance the bomb!” he insisted. “All I did was make sure the shipment got into the States without incident. That’s all.”

“I think I’ve heard enough.” Susan said as she stood up. “I’ll have one of the agents come and take your statement.”

“Susan, wait.” Ben called out as she was about to leave. “I want a deal.”

“Excuse me?” she asked as she walked back to the table.

“I can get you Diaz and Rafiq. I can bring the whole operation down.”

“You’re honestly trying to leverage a deal right now?” she asked, incredulously.

“The same as all the defense lawyers I’ve dealt with in my career. I’m not trying to avoid jail time. I just want a lesser sentence.”

“A lesser sentence?” Susan ask, not quite believing what she was hearing.

Ben nodded. “Right now, I’m looking at aiding and abetting a terrorist. I could be looking at life. I want the charges limited to the smuggling cover-up. That’s still carries a punishment of twenty years. A lesser sentence-- that’s all I’m asking.”

“My team can handle things just fine, thank you.” Susan said defiantly before storming out of the room.

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** 

**THE DEAD DROP**

That same day, Susan, Ray and Standish discussed the situation over comms with Frankie and Will who were still in Cairo. 

“He wants a deal.” Susan informed everyone. “A lesser sentence for getting Rafiq.”

“Do you think he can do it?” Frankie asked.

“He says he can.” Susan replied. “He says he knows all the details of the smuggling operation.”

“Do you believe him?” Frankie asked.

Susan sighed. “I don’t know. He would’ve had to have known the details in order to cover it up. But, frankly, I say let him rot. This team can easily take down the network without him. We’ve done it before.”

"I think we should give him the plea deal.” Ray spoke up.

"Are you kidding me?" a shocked Susan asked. "He funded terrorists!” 

Ray continued, sympathetically. “He did something stupid, okay. He tried to cover it up and got caught. I know what that’s like.”

"You are not comparing sleeping with Gigi to what Ben did." Susan responded.

"I feel bad for the guy. He got in too deep and I think he deserves a break."

“His expertise would be helpful, Susan.” Will noted.

“Fine. I don’t care.” Susan said, as she leaned back, took the comm out of her ear and crossed her arms in disgust.

"Susan, I know this is hard but if he..." Frankie began.

"Uh, guys." Ray interrupted. "Susan took her comms out. She's pretty much sulking right now."

After the meeting was over, Will asked to speak to Susan alone.

“Want to talk about it?” Will asked once Susan put the comm back in her ear. 

“It doesn’t matter. You’re going to anyway.” Susan pouted.

“So do you.” He pointed out.

“Well, I’m a professional. I’m paid to be annoying.”

“Susan…” Will began.

“We don’t need him!” she interrupted. The team is perfectly capable of catching Rafiq without him.”

“Maybe,” he conceded. “But it doesn’t hurt to have someone on the inside.”

“He’s on the inside because he was in on it!” Susan blurted out. “We’re basically rewarding him for criminal behavior.”

“We’re trying to catch the real bad guy here, Susan, and that’s Rafiq. Look, I know how hard this is...”

Susan stood up off the stool. “No, you don’t. You have no idea. Ben was one of the most principled men I knew. He was like you—he followed the rules. He hated corruption. He hated people who just phoned in their jobs. He’d work night and day to ensure a conviction. So how does a man like that do something so incredibly stupid?!” 

“I don’t know.” Will admitted. “You’re right. He was a good guy and I think he still is. It’s like Ray said—he got in too deep.” 

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***  


**THE FEDERAL BUILDING – NEW YORK**

“We’re giving you your plea deal.” Susan told Ben back in the interrogation room.

Thank you.” Ben said.

“Don’t.” Susan said, her voice hard. “If it was up to me, there’d be no deal. Lucky for you, Ray’s a nice guy.”

Ben nodded. “Tell him I appreciate it.”

“I’m sure you do.” Susan scoffed. “Because we both know if the shoe was on other foot, and you were prosecuting Ray, you wouldn’t hesitate the throw the book at him.”

“I’ve given out plea deals, Susan.” He argued a bit defensively.

“Yes, you have. And you’d come home and complain because you hate the whole concept of plea deals. What did you used to say about them?”

"They allow the criminal to take advantage of the system" he admitted.

“Yes. But being the hypocrite that you are, you have no problem accepting them on your behalf.”

“People change, Susan.” He argued.

“Obviously not for the better.” She said as she got up to leave.  
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***  


**THE HIVE – CAIRO**

“So, how’d it go with Captain Sunshine?” Frankie asked Will as she walked into the conference room.

Will rubbed his temples before answering. He had just ended a phone call with a very irate Captain Hassain of the Egyptian Nation Police and it did not go well.

“Great.” Will said, sarcastically. “If you consider being told we aren’t welcome here a good thing.”

Frankie shrugged. “It’s a US operation. He can’t do anything.”

“No, but he can refuse to cooperate.” Will noted. He then elaborated. “He blames us, well me, for the attack on the weapons depots. On the one hand, he has a point. I mean, I am the one who called for the evacuation of the city.”

“Yeah, because we thought there was a nuclear bomb.” Frankie argued. “You made the right call.”

“I know but he doesn’t see it that way. I wish Ray was here. He could’ve found some way to smooth this over.”

“Yeah, he is surprisingly good at his job.” Frankie said with a confused look on her face.

Will shook his head in frustration. “I don’t get it. I’m just as personable as Ray. People like me! Especially people in law enforcement!”

“Well, apparently, Hassain is the exception to the rule. Anyway, I just got a text from Ray. He’s headed to the Dead Drop with Susan’s ex.”

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** 

**THE DEAD DROP**

Susan sat at the bar waiting for Ray to arrive with Ben. Due to the seriousness of his crime, not to mention the size of his bank account, Ben was deemed a flight risk and denied bail. However, as per his plea deal—he was allowed to be released into Ray’s custody so he could meet with the team to discuss how to take down Rafiq’s operation—something Susan was not happy about at all.

Finally, Ray arrived with Ben. A wave of disgust coursed through Susan. She could barely stand to look at him—all decked out in black dress pants, sport coat and white shirt. “How’d you get the suit?” she asked when Ben walked over to her alone. “Doesn’t look like the standard prison uniform.” 

Ben tilted his head towards Ray, “Your boyfriend let me get a change of clothes.” Smiling, he added, “He’s a nice guy, Ray.”

“Yeah, he is.” Susan replied, her tone harsh. “So, was your wife happy to see you?” she asked a bit vindictively. 

Ignoring her tone, Ben responded. “No. She left the moment I was arrested. Apparently, being married to a convict wasn’t on her agenda.”

“I don’t blame her.” She scoffed. “So how’d…?” she started to ask, pointing to his clothes.

“Ray persuaded her let me get one of my suits. He stayed with me the whole time while I changed. Like I said, he’s a nice guy.” Noticing the shorts and low cut, blue blouse she was wearing. “You’re dressed more casual than I remember.”

“It’s for work. I need to see Diaz later.”

Been smiled. “Guess Ray doesn’t have the same issues I did about you working undercover.”

Susan’s face remained hard. “No. Ray’s a professional.” She put her hand out. “And don’t talk to me like we’re friends. We’re not. Not anymore.”

“Guys,” Ray yelled out. We have Will and the others on the video call. It’s time to start the briefing.”

“Okay, Ben,” Will started off. “How does this operation work?”

Ben started to explain the network when he was interrupted by Susan.

“Enough.” She said forcefully. “ We know all this. Rafiq steals relics, has them smuggled to the US, Diaz finds a buyer and ships the money to Rafiq. If you’re going to tell us things we already know, then you might as well just go back to jail.”

Ben gave Susan a hard stare. “Diaz doesn’t ship the money to Rafiq. Rafiq gets paid through a Hawaladar transaction in Cairo.”

“A Hala-what?” Standish asked.

. “Hawaladar. It’s an ancient systems of undocumented money transfers based on Hawaladar code. There's no transaction record, no paper trial. It's a dead end."

“So how does he get paid?” Standish asked.

“Through intermediaries” Ben explained. “The buyer transfers the money to Diaz who gives it to an Hawaladar dealer. That dealer calls his counterpart in Cairo who hands a predestined amount of money over to an associate of Rafiq provided that that person has the correct code word. The bankers settle up after. Money never leaves the country.”

“Damn.” Standish muttered, impressed.

“And how the hell would you know all that?” Susan asked in an accusatory tone, her arms crossed. “I thought you only covered up evidence.”

“A lot of the cases I’ve dealt with in the Attorney General’s office involve goods being sold on the black market. Most black market sales are conducted through Hawaladar dealers.”

“Okay, how does this help us?” Will asked.

I overheard Diaz talking to someone named Bashir once. It sounded like this Bashir was the person Rafiq uses to collect his money. “

“But, like Will asked, how does that help us?” Frankie asked. “We don’t know where this Bashir is and even if we could find out, someone like that is not going to give up the code word very easily.”

Ben looked at Susan. “You’ve been in Diaz’s office. Did you come across a small green notebook in his top drawer?”

“Yes. It had all kinds of names. I took pictures of all the pages and sent them to Standish.” She reported.

“Bashir’s name and address should be in that notebook.” Ben stated.

“Checking now.” Standish said, typing into his laptop. After a few seconds, “Got it! Sending the info to you know, Will.”

“Okay, so we grab Bashir. Then what? We still don’t have the code.” Frankie pointed out.

Ben looked down briefly and sighed. “The pass code is sent to Diaz’s phone. I’m sure your man (pointing to Standish) can hack it.”

Susan looked at Ben incredulously. “You know for someone who wasn’t involved in the operation, you know an awful lot.”

“Diaz knew he had his hooks in me; he let his guard down.“ he admitted.

“And of course, you couldn’t use that advantage to turn him in.” Susan said pointedly.

“Okay” Ray began, trying to diffuse the situation. “So, you guys grab Bashir, then go to the Hala-ware place with the right code.”

“It should be me.” Jai spoke up. The banker might be more receptive to an Indian. Plus, I’m sure there’s a high turnover in criminal circles so Bashir being gone shouldn’t raise any flags.”

“Okay,” Will said, trying to piece together the plan. “Jai poses as Bashir, gets the money, then what? Bashir calls Rafiq?”

“No.” Ben responded. “The banker texts Rafiq. Rafiq then contacts Bashir and asks to meet.”

“But won’t he tell Rafiq that it’s not Bashir?” Standish asked.

“No. As long as the banker doesn’t suspect anything, he won’t use a name. He’ll just refer to him as “your man.” 

"I don't trust him, Will." Susan said, staring hard at Ben. “He could be lying.”

Ben gaped at her. “Why would I lie? My whole plea deal is contingent on helping you catch Diaz and Rafiq."

"I don't know. Maybe you see this as a chance to escape. Change your name and live high off the hog with your dirty money."

Sadness flickered on his face as he asked, "You honestly think I’d do that?" 

"Honestly, I don't have any idea would you'd do anymore." she replied, unsympathetically.

"You know, you used to have more empathy--even for criminals." Ben pointed out.

"Well, you used to be a stand up guy.' She shot back.

“Okay, you know what?, I think that’s it.” Will interrupted. “Standish, see what you can get off Diaz’s phone and then send it me. We’ll see about grabbing Bashir.”

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** 

**CAIRO**

That night, Will and Frankie successfully nabbed Bashir without anyone in Rafiq’s group being the wiser. The next day, Will drove to the Hawaladar center with Frankie and Jai when suddenly his phone rang. Will sighed when he saw the caller ID come up on screen.

“Captain Hassain.” Will said through the speaker phone. “What a pleasure. What can I help you with today?”

“You can help by ceasing any operation you are conducting on my soil.” As if he could see their surprised faces, “Yes, I know you and your people are still working here in Cairo. Nothing goes on in this city without me knowing.”

Bristling at the Captain’s tone, Frankie spoke up. “This is an American operation, Captain. You have no authority over what we can or cannot do.”

Hassain responded heatedly. “You may be Americans but you are in *my* jurisdiction and I *demand* to know the nature of your mission.”

Will spoke up. “Captain, I’m sorry but our mission is classified. I can assure you though that we are working in the best interest of both our governments.”

“Of that, I am doubtful. If you won’t tell me the nature of your mission than I demand to know where you are going!”

Will’s eyebrows shot up as he asked. “You demand to know? Well, in that case, we’re going to a little place called ‘hadha lays min shanik.’

Hassain grumbled, ‘hadha lays min shanik’ means ‘none of your business.’”

“Does it? Wow. Imagine that.” Will said before hanging up on Hassain.

Jai glared at Will from the back seat. “That’s my line.” He then turned to Frankie, “He stole my line.”

Several minutes later, the trio arrived at the Hawaladar center, where Will approached the banker with the code Standish got from Diaz’s phone.

“Are you the man selling the Scinge-beer?” Will asked the banker, an older gentleman who was sitting in the center of the room.

“Scinge-beer?” the man asked dubiously. Seeing Jai in the middle he asked “You are not who I expected. Where is Mr. Bashir?” 

“I’m afraid Mr. Bashir is no longer with us.” Jai replied. “As you can expect, there is a great deal of turn-over in our organization.”

Suddenly another man in the room recognized Will, "Agent Will?” “Agent Will for FBI! It’s Manwar! You saved my life” The man exclaimed as he embraced Will. He then turned to the banker. “I was interpreter for FBI--best one they had. He secured exit visas for my family."

"I'm sorry.” Will objected. “You must be mistaken. I just have one of those faces, I guess."

"I named my youngest child after you." the man insisted.

The banker signaled his men to grab the trio. Gauging for a fight, Frankie glared at Will, "See. This is why you should never be nice to people."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The idea of Susan's ex being involved in something shady came to me early this year but I discarded it. "Get You" by fierywhiskeyy inspired me to revisit the idea.(My original idea involved a less serious crime but the use of the bomb scene in this story dictated a more serious crime)
> 
> I'm not entirely sure if the legal information in this chapter, specifically whether he would be charged with aiding & abetting without the plea deal, is correct. Also, I'm aware that the DA's office or the Attorney General's office needs to authorize plea deals--the FBI can't just decide. I glossed over it -but my thinking is the FBI took the deal to the AG who authorized it.
> 
> Information about the Hawaladar network came from Blood and Treasure, Season 1 (2019). However, I looked it up and this is a real transaction method. Though I'm not sure if all the details I added about it are correct. Note--some of the dialogue in Cairo (the humorous bit in the car and the scene at the Hawaladar center came from Blood and Treasure.


	3. Chapter 3

**CAIRO**

The trio found themselves surrounded by the banker's security detail. Luckily, the agents, with some help from Manwar, were able to fight them off. In the midst of the fight, Frankie spotted the banker fleeing and quickly ran after him. Though she was able to tackle him, he bit her hand, pushed her off him and ran off.

"You lost him?" a shocked Will asked as he and Jai caught up to Frankie who was nursing her hand.

"Hey, he was pretty wily for an old guy." she retorted. Then she smiled and held up something. "Got his phone though."

Will's face lit up. "Wait, that means his phone number's in the contacts. We can track his location.."

Jai took the phone from Frankie "Eh, probably not. I’m sure a man like Rafiq has contacts everywhere. He’s probably already heard about our little altercation. But it’s worth a try.”

Jai was right. While they did pinpoint, Rafiq’s last known location, he was nowhere to be found. “He left his phone behind.” Will muttered.

“Of course.” Jai noted. “He probably has several on stand-by for situations like this. However, there still might be information on that phone we could use.”

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***  
**  
INTERROGATION ROOM – FEDERAL PRISON**

Susan watched as the officer let her once successful, polished ex-husband into the room. However, instead of wearing one of his fancy suits, he was now in a standard issue orange jumpsuit. She still could barely stand to look at him.

“Your plan didn’t work.” She said coldly as soon as he sat down. “The Hawaladar banker found out it was a trap and ran off. However, the team got his phone.” She slid a piece of paper over to him. “Those are a list of contacts in his phone. Any names pop up at you?”

He studied the list and said with a look of shame on his face, “Omar Yousef. He’s one of the captains frequently hired to smuggle the goods in the US.”

“Something the US government should have known about.” She said pointedly. “What’s the name of his ship?”

“He has a few. It’s a smuggling operation, Susan. “ he said matter-of-factly. “They can’t use the same ships or even captains all the time.”

She rolled her eyes. “Well, forgive me for not being as knowledgeable as you.” A thought occurred to her and she leaned back and asked. “So, how long have you been involved in your little criminal enterprise?”

“It’s not my…” he started to argue before stopping himself. He took a deep breath and looked down. “Two years.”

Susan leaned forward and looked at him in shock. “Two years?! You’ve been covering up evidence for two freaking years??!!”

“I’m sorry. I…” He said, looking down, his voice cracking. “I didn’t know how to get out. I...”

“You know what?” Susan said harshly, standing up with her hands out, not even bothering to look at him. “I don’t want to hear it. I’ll have an officer take you back to your cell.”

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** 

**SUSAN & RAY'S PLACE**

Ray woke up in the middle of the night to find an empty pillow where Susan's head should be. "It's three in the morning." he thought to himself. "Where the heck is she?" He got up and found her in the dining room looking at her laptop. From behind her, Ray could see the screen. It was photo from months earlier with the headline "Dozens killed in terrorist attack in Aswan church." 

"Babe, come on. You don't need to be looking at that." he said as he leaned over to shut the laptop.

"Yes, I do!" Susan insisted, blocking the laptop so he couldn't touch it. "I need to know how many people died because of what Ben did.."

"They died because of Rafiq, Susan. He's the one who planned the attacks." he reminded her as he rubbed her back.

"Yes! Because BEN let it happen! Any of these deaths could've been avoided if he'd just done his damned job!"

Ray squatted down next to her. "You don't know that." He sighed. "I know this doesn't make it any better, but I think he is trying to make up for what he did."

Susan scoffed. "Please. The only reason he's helping us is because he got caught.” Suddenly, her voice cracked and she looked down. "I don't get it. I was married to him. How could I not see what kind of man he was? Why couldn't I see what he'd become?"

"How could you?" he asked. "People change, Susan. I’m sure he was exactly who you thought he was, but things happen and people get caught up in..." he struggled to find the right words and simply said, "You can't be expected to know how his life would've turned out."

"They could've died." Susan said, bitterly. "Will, Frankie, Jai. They could've died in Cairo because of him."

"Because of Rafiq." he corrected. "It was his plan. All Ben did was make sure the shipment got through."

"That's *all* he did." she said, sarcastically.

"Okay, it was bad." he conceded. "But..."

"Two years!!" she interrupted, forcefully. "He was in on it for *two* years! That means the last time I talked to him--the time you met him--he stood there and lied right to my face."

"I lied to Will's'" 

"Susan rolled her eyes. "Ugh, will you please stop comparing that. They're not the same thing."

"Feels like it to me." Ray noted, then continued. "I lied to my best friend's face for seven months. I knew how messed up that was and I did it anyway. I hated it but STILL did it. " he paused for a moment. "If Ben was the guy you thought he was, I don't think lying was as easy as you think."

Instead of responding, Susan sighed, bend her head down and closed her eyes. She was so tired.

"Come on," he said as he stood up and closed the laptop. "Mission’s still going on. You need to get some sleep." 

Susan sighed deeply and got up without argument.  


*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***  
**  
CAIRO**

After learning that Youssef was an associate of Rafiq, Frankie formulated a plan. “Youssef probably has no idea yet that Rafiq ditched his phone. So, why not call Youssef from Rafiq’s old phone and request a meeting? We nab Youssef; we already have Bashir. We’ll just pit them against each other and see who cracks first.”

“I like it.” Jai said, impressed.

“Yeah,” Will agreed. “It’s pretty non-violent for you.”

Frankie rolled her eyes and sighed. “I know. I think you’re rubbing off on me too much.”

Soon, the trap was set. After using Youssef’s phone number to find out his address, Jai texted Youssef from Rafiq’s phone asking for a meeting. The plan was embarrassingly simple—knock on Youssef’s door and grab him. Unfortunately, Youssef wasn’t *in* his home when they arrived—he was standing on the front porch. Suspicious of the three people who were getting out of what looked like a government vehicle, Youssef made a bee-line for his own car.

“No, No, No.” Will said to himself as he ran to stop Youssef. At the same time, Frankie and Jai turned back to their vehicle. Jai got in the driver’s seat just in time to see Will jump on the roof of Youssef’s car as it sped away. “Is he nuts?” Frankie exclaimed. Frankie watched as Will tried unsuccessfully to grab Youssef through the sunroof. Suddenly, Youssef swerved back and forth, sometimes sideswiping cars, in an effort to shake Will off. Luckily, Will was able to hang on to the roof. Suddenly, Jai stopped following Youssef and turned left.

“What the hell are you doing?” Frankie yelled.

“I have a plan. Don’t worry.” Jai stated. The plan became obvious when Jai suddenly turned right and successfully blocked Youssef’s vehicle. Youssef swerved to avoid a collision but still ended up hitting Jai’s car. As Will slid off the roof without injury, Youssef ran out to escape only to get shot in the leg by Frankie..

At that moment, who should arrive at the scene but Captain Hassain. “I should have known!” the officer declared. “Agent Chase—whom death and destruction follow wherever he goes!”

. “That’d be a good team motto.” Frankie said to Will in admiration, as she and Jai went to apprehend a wobbling Youssef.

Will looked at her as if to say “Not helping” and then turned to the officer. Realizing he wasn’t going to get anywhere without the help of the Egyptian National Police, Will made a decision. “Captain Hassain. How would you like to be part of a joint American-Egyptian task force to take down Ammon Rafiq?”

Hassain looked intrigued. “You can do this?”

“”I believe we can.” Will asserted. 

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***  
**  
RED HOOK TERMINAL PORT**

The next day, Susan sat at her desk nursing her second cup of coffee. Ray was right—staying up to research Rafiq’s attacks was a bad idea. Not only was it futile; she was exhausted from not getting enough sleep. “Carmen” wasn’t dressed as provocatively now. She still looked hot—that was part of the alias. But the neckline didn’t plunge as low and the shorts weren’t quite so short. Normally, Susan loved the sexed-up alias. It was fun. However, it lost its luster once she found out what Diaz did to Ben. Bad enough the man funded a terrorist like Rafiq, but to blackmail a government official into helping? To exploit a man’s mistake like that? Of course, she couldn’t let her aversion show. The mission was too important. As much as she loved going undercover, it was times like this that she really hated it. But Susan just had to bide her time so that when Diaz left for the day, Susan could go to work acquiring the evidence Ben said should be in the office.

Later, as Susan searched for evidence against Diaz, Ray and Standish spent the end of their shift searching the storage compartment for artifacts. Ray had to admit that Standish was getting better at being undercover. He was still clumsy as hell but at least he stopped whining every time he had to pick up a box. Suddenly, he heard Standish’s voice “Holy crap! Look at this!” Ray looked up and saw Standish holding up a gold medallion with a small green gemstone in the center.

“This must’ve fallen out of one of the boxes.” Standish said. “This is like something out of the comics.” He put the medallion over his head. “I’m like John Stewart right now.” He said, his hands on his hips and a huge smile on his face.

“Are you nuts?!” Ray said in a hushed, but shocked voice. “You can’t keep that! That’s one of the relics! Take it off.”

“Relax. I’m not keeping it. I just want to wear it for the mission. You know. Channel my inner Green Lantern.” Standish said as he puffed out his chest.

“That thing better be back here when this mission’s over.” Ray said, shaking his finger at Standish.

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***  
**  
THE DEAD DROP**

Susan sat at the Dead Drop with Standish waiting for Ray to arrive with Ben. She didn’t know why Ray felt the need to bring Ben to discuss an upcoming shipment they believed might be smuggling artifacts. Susan knew they could handle it on their own and told Will that when she and Ray called him to discuss it. But no, Will had to agree with Ray that Ben’s two years on the inside could be useful. And, of course, it’d give Ben a chance to honor his precious plea deal.

Finally, Ray arrived with Ben who was decked out in his suit again. Susan rolled her eyes. The man did not deserve to be wearing a nice suit. After Ben briefed the group about what to expect, he surprised Susan by saying he believed he should be there at the dock to ensure that Diaz stays on the other side of the dock.

“Absolutely not.” Susan scoffed. “We don’t take civilians on missions and I certainly wouldn’t take you.”

“I’ve been at these before, Susan. I know how it works.”

“And that’s exactly why you’re not going!”

"Wait. You've been to these before?" Ray asked

"Quite a few times actually." Ben admitted. "I wanted to see for myself what was being transported and how."

Susan rolled her eyes. "Right. Because you're so conscientious."

"Diaz won't be suspicious?" Standish asked.

"No. From what I've been told my arrest hasn't been made public yet. I'll tell Diaz of a suspected raid happening tomorrow morning by the DEA regarding smuggled contraband. I’ll tell him I'm there to plant drugs on one of the other boats to throw them off. He'll believe me. I've done it before.”

"There's no end to your talents, is there?" Susan asked sarcastically.

"Okay." Ray cut in, trying to diffuse the situation. "I think Ben coming's a good idea. I'm going to call Will and tell him what's going on. Standish, why don't you see if you find out how close that ship is now? You know, using the, uh, satellite--tracking thing."

"That's not exactly what it is but, yeah, I can find out how far out that ship is. I can also create some internet chatter about this "upcoming raid.” There's always rumors or conspiracy theories about that shit." 

“Okay, then.” Ray said, standing up. Before leaving the room, he looked at Susan, then Ben and asked Susan “You going to be okay?” he asked her in a warning tone.

“I’ll be fine.” she grumbled.

“Susan, I, I know you’re angry at me..” Ben began when he and Susan were alone.

"Angry at you? Angry at you?” she blurted out as she jumped off the stool. “Damned straight, I'm angry! I’m angry, confused, scared, sad! I have so many feelings I don’t know what do with!” Calming down, she said with a sigh. “When we were together, you were so serious. You worked so hard---first, law school, then at the district attorney's office. You had your whole future mapped out. You were determined to change the world. So, how does a man like that throw it all away? How does a man who's spent his career fighting corruption find himself in bed with a terrorist?"

"I don't know." he said through gritted teeth. “ Looking down in shame, he continued. "I don’t--I just--I dug myself into this hole and I kept digging myself in further until I.... I made excuses. I donated to charities to somehow atone for what I’d done. I told myself that was enough.” He sighed heavily. “The truth is, the man you knew was gone a long time ago."

“You should have told me.” She said, looking at him for the first time with kind, but sad, eyes. “The *second* you knew Diaz had you, you should’ve come to me. Hell, you should’ve come to me about the Clive Bennett case. But you didn’t. Why? It’s not like we ended in a bad place. Why didn’t you come to me?”

He shrugged since he didn’t really have a good answer for that. “I don’t like to ask for help, I guess.”

“No, you don’t. “ She agreed, sadly. “You think it makes you look weak.” Susan looked up him. The overwhelming anger she’d felt earlier was gone; replaced by sadness. Sadness that the man she once loved, hell, the man she admired, ruined his life.

“Alright.” Susan agreed, kindly. “You can come.”

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***  


**CAIRO**

Unlike Bashir, Youssef rolled pretty easily—especially with Frankie threatening more bodily harm if he didn’t talk. After some painful persuasion by Frankie, Youssef told them that Rafiq was probably at his training compound, Soon after, Will's team, accompanied by Hassain's men burst into the compound, guns blazing. A fierce battle ensued but Rafiq's men were no match for the combined prowess of the Egyptian National Police and Will's team. Realizing his men were outmatched, Rafiq made a run for it. Luckily, Will saw him run out the door and quickly subdued the man he was fighting in order to chase after Rafiq. Unfortunately, Rafiq had too much of a head start and was about to speed away in a vehicle, when Will remembered his never-before-used-exploding watch. He quickly removed the watch, pushed the appropriate button and threw it towards Rafiq's vehicle. Rafiq’s jeep was caught in the blast causing the terrorist to be thrown from his vehicle. 

In the end, Rafiq was finally apprehended by the police. Among the casualties was Capt. Hassain's car which fell victim to Will's exploding watch.

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***  
**  
RED HOOK TERMINAL PORT**

As Ben (fitted with an ankle monitor and comms) met with Diaz to discuss the "upcoming raid", Ray, Susan and Standish sneaked onto the dock. As Susan went towards Diaz's office, Ray and Standish walked to the area of the dock where the shipment had just arrived. There, they saw a group of men --some unloading crates, and two others, several feet away, standing guard.

"Lot of firepower," Ray noted.

"Considering how much some of that stuff is worth, no wonder." Susan pointed out on comms, 

As planned, Standish walked over to the guards as "Mark Banner" and rambled on about how working nights sucks and how he'd much rather be at a party, or basketball game or anywhere other than unloading crap off some stupid boat. As Standish rambled on, Ray came from behind, subdued the guards and took their weapons. He and Standish then proceeded quietly towards the ship being unloaded. Unfortunately, as they got closer, Standish accidentally knocked over a crowbar. A firefight ensued with the crew easily being defeated. .

Which was a good thing because before it was even was over, Standish's weapon locked up on him. "What the?? I HATE automatic weapons!" Standish yelled. As he struggled to unlock his weapons, Ray scoured the area looking for more bad guys. Suddenly, Standish looked up and saw the captain of the ship aiming his pistol at Ray whose back was turned. Thinking fast, Standish screamed and leapt in front of Ray to take the bullet. As Standish went down, Ray turned, saw the gunman and fired, killing him instantly.

“Standish!” Ray yelled, his heart pounding furiously as he rushed over to the younger man’s side, fully expecting to see him lying in a pool of blood. However, to his surprise, there was none.

“Son of a...!” Ray said with a laugh as Standish started getting up. “The medal took the hit!” Standish looked down, saw the medallion and frowned." What?" "Man! I can't even die heroically." he complained.

Meanwhile, Diaz heard the commotion outside, and rushed out to see what was happening.

Freeze!" Susan yelled "FBI! Turn around with your hands up!!"

Diaz did as instructed and smiled broadly when he saw Susan's face. "Carmen! Well, imagine that.You are more than a _bonita chica_ " "Put the gun down.' she instructed, coldly." Kick it over there."

After Diaz discarded his gun, Susan walked over to take him into custody. However, as soon as she stepped behind him, he quickly twirled around, knocking her to the ground, her gun flying out of her hand. Though she scrambled to get it, Diaz got to it first and aimed it right at Susan's head. At that moment, a shot went out and a bullet caught Diaz right in the head! Shocked, Susan looked at Ben who had just killed Diaz with his own gun.

"Thank you for saving me." Susan said to Ben as the FBI arrived on the scene.

"Couldn't very well have your death on my conscience--not with all the others." Ben said sadly. He looked over at Ray who was briefing the other agents. "I meant what I said before about you finding a nice guy. You deserve it."

"Ben Sampson.” said an FBI agent who approached the pair.

Ben put his hands up in surrender. "I know. I'm under arrest. I'm ready to go." He then looked at Susan and said. "I'm sorry, Susan. I truly am."

“I’ll testify to what you did here. Maybe it’ll help some with your sentencing.”

Ben smiled at her in gratitude as he went with the agent.

Susan turned and watched the man she once loved be led away in handcuffs. At that moment, the man she loved wrapped his arms around her from behind. "You okay?" Ray asked.

"No." she admitted and looked up at him.. "Promise me something. If you're ever in trouble--If you ever do something-- I don't care how bad, talk to me. Please. I can’t do this again." 

Ray turned Susan around and wrapped her in hug and kissed her head. "I promise."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The sequence with the car in Cairo and some of dock sequence at the end was taken from the last two episodes of Season 1, Blood & Treasure. Some dialogue from that season finale was taken as well.
> 
> Also, while the premise of this story (blood antiquities being sold to fund a terrorist) was taken from Blood & Treasure, I did have to rework some of the plot. So, any technical errors or plot holes are probably my fault.


End file.
